From the Director

In November of 1934, as was customary for women of her social stature, my grandmother was dropped off at the hospital, into the hands of strangers, to be delivered of her first child. Recovering from "twilight sleep" and a difficult "operative" delivery, my grandmother remained bedridden in the hospital for two weeks. My father was brought to her every four hours to be bottle fed-as was fashionable in the 30's. By the time she was released from the hospital, my grandmother had slipped into a deep and lasting postpartum depression that would prevent her from ever really bonding with her son.

Every caregiver who assists a woman in labor knows that the way in which a child enters this world will affect that child's life and the lives of others indefinitely. A meteorologist termed this type of phenomenon as the "butterfly effect," based upon his observations that the flapping of a butterfly's wings in Hawaii could cause monsoons half way around the world!

Birth can certainly have a "butterfly affect." And that is why I am passionate about a woman's right to gentle birth choices.

In 1996, my daughter's birth was a wonderful out-of-hospital experience at a birth center in Maryland. When we moved to Wisconsin the following year, I was dismayed to learn that birth centers were not yet an option. Our youngest son was born at home instead--an experience that our family cherishes. It has been my burning desire since then to open a center in the Milwaukee area, so that other women would have the same choices that I was lucky enough to have.

All women should be able to birth where ever they are most comfortable, whether at home, in a hospital, or at a freestanding birth center. And to that end, I am grateful to be able to offer women a place where they can have a homelike birth if they feel that their own 'home,' for whatever reason, does not feel right.

~Coral C. Slavin, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Slavin is the owner and director of the Well-Rounded Maternity Center. She is Co- Chair for the Childbirth Assistance, Resources and Education
(C.A.R.E. Network) of Wisconsin--a membership and referral organization of birth professionals dedicated to helping women and their families have safe and satisfying births.

Coral is married to husband Jim. She has three children. Robert, the oldest was born in a hospital. Ruth was born in a free-standing birth center and Michael was born at home. As a birth professional and a mother, she knows the pros and cons of birth in all three settings.

Coral has a doctorate in health education, and has been certified as a Bradley Natural Childbirth Educator; both an ICEA and DONA Doula, an ACE Prenatal Fitness/Yoga Instructor, and a Stress Management Counselor and hypnotherapist. She has been a doula and childbirth educator for over 15 years and has attended over 300 births locally, in all types of settings.

As a doula, Coral is dedicated to helping parents-to-be make the choices that are right for them. She understands well the pros and cons of the decisions parents face regarding birth place, care-providers, and interventions.

"I believe that childbirth is a normal, instinctive process that integrates body, mind, and spirit. It is not an illness requiring treatment or routine intervention. Women planning on birthing in a hospital most often say that they fear losing control of their birth experience. Yet, to labor most effectively, it is this very control that they must surrender, allowing the natural process to flow. They are able to let go when they have faith in their own bodies, and in their caregivers. Women are capable of giving birth naturally if they have the commitment, knowledge, and support to do so."

Contact Info: call 262-893-9945, or email - coral@well-roundedmaternity.com